Is the cabinet reshuffle for the country or the UMNO elections of 2007?
15-02-2006 

PAK LAH has resuffled his cabinet, so the newspapers and spinmeisters said. But has he? He has organised his cabinet to be ready for the 2007 UMNO elections, not to run the country effectively. He has blinked at a time when he should not. He hopes the changes would destroy lhis enemies. But he has ensured divisions in the cabinet, between the cabinet and UMNO rank-and-file, UMNO against the people. The other politicial parties in the National Front did not count, and he dropped what their leaders did not want. His predecessor, Tun Mahathir Mohamed, is not unhappy at the cabinet resuffle especially since many of his supporters are in it. Those who had watched Pak Lah announcing the cabinet on television would have seen a glum prime minister ill at ease while his deputy, linked to Tun Mahathir, grinning away. When Pak Lah dismissed the AP scandal as a minor mistake and that did not justifiy sacking the minister, he gave the impression that in running the country, those in politicial offfice are expected to fill their pockets with ill-gotten money.

He could have offset this by ensuring that it was his cabinet. But he could not. He had no clear vision, whether it should be his cabinet or whether it should help his teach win the 2007 UMNO elections. He did not make any important appointments, most dropped had wanted to quit anyway or move on to stare politics or retire. What we saw is not musical chairs, for that entails that when the music stops, there post less. It was jobs for the boys, even if they were not on his side. He announced Mr Muhammad Taib, aquitted in Australia because "he did not speak English" – rather strange for a University of Malaysia graduate of the pre-1970s – for having on him RM3 million in various currencies and which he had not declared. Mr Muhammad Taib, a former mentri besar of Selangor, is a warlord who could stop Dato' Khir Toyo so that he would not challenge Pak Lah's son-in-law for the UMNO Youth deputy leadership. But why should Dato' Muhammed's appointment to the Senate announced the same time as the cabinet reshuffle?

TV3, run by Mr Khairy Jamaludin's acolyte, has daily coverage on wrongs in Selangor, obviously to put Mr Khir Toyo on the spot. Mr Khairy, who has never won an election contesting for it, may have to face Dato' Khir in 2007 to defend his UMNO Youth deputy leadership. Or challenge Dato' Hishamuddin Hussein for UMNO Youth leader. But questions are asked on the UMNO ground if the problems in Selangor are not in the rest of the states. His men were to have been in the present cabinet, but his father-in-law could not oblige for reasons of his own survival. The warlords in UMNO had to be accommodated, which is Datin Rafiidah Aziz remains in her post. That Mr Khairy's cousin is the "AP King" and Datin Rafidah family's control of APs makes sure one cannot accuse the other, a sort of insurance.

The aim is to make sure Pak Lah's team is in charge after 2007. The individual cabinet portfolios do not matter. What the loser in the Gerakan leadership told repoters after he was dropped, that he would have to find a new job, says it all. The country runs on auto-pilot, despite the cabinet. It has run that day for decades. It can continue till 2007. But the ground is restive. They do not see that the country must be sacrificed for UMNO leadership gains. The ministers are unhappy that the Press, which echos occasionally these concerns of the people, are more likely to be less deferential. The alternative press and Internet have proved a more reliably bell-wealther of what happens in the country. This is seen by the official attacks on them but they will not go away. The cabinet resuffle to strengthen Pak Lah's position in the UMNO leaderships stake is going to be scruntised, and those in power must now explain what they need not in the past.

The individual cabinet portfolios do not mean anything. Their holders are proforma appointees, not to strengthen the country but to ensure they collect ill-gotten gains and attack the whistleblowers. But this is not to say those droppsed were by accident. Datuk Kadir Sheikh Fadhir was dropped because he negotiated with Tun Mahathir about Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah being deputy prime minister. Pak Lah never forgets a slight, and given their background in UMNO, he went. Rest assured that the new cabinet has members who are either too corrupt, too effecient but corrupt, or useful for the vote bank. The porftolios they hold therefore do not matter. At least until they show they do. The country is wound up by news media – either official or owned by one of other of the National Front partners or its members – of changes that would come in the cabinet reshuffle. But when the event takes place, the people are too tired to yawn.

M.G.G. Pillai
pillai@streamyx.com